Survival rates for most cancer victims improve

Figures published yesterday by the Office for National Statistics show five-year survival rates improved for all cancers diagnosed in men between 2001-2005 except for bladder cancer where there was no improvement.

Survival rates among women improved for cancers of the colon, lung and breast but remained stable after five years for cancers of the cervix, bladder, oesophagus and stomach.

The largest increase in five-year survival over the period was for cancer of the colon.

But the figures again exposed significant differences in survival rates between the 28 cancer networks in England.

Some 19.3 per cent of patients with stomach cancer treated in the Yorkshire cancer network, which covers West Yorkshire and parts of North Yorkshire, survived five years, which is the best performance outside London.

But a third fewer people with the condition survived to 2010 if they were treated in the Humber and Yorkshire Coast network and in the North Trent network, which covers South Yorkshire and the north Midlands.

There were also big disparities in prostate cancer survival, with 82.1 per cent of patients living five years in the Yorkshire network, falling to 69.4 per cent in North Trent – the worst performance in the country.

Survival among breast cancer patients, which is the most common cancer, was broadly similar with around 83 per cent living five years, the highest rate for any of the cancers.

In contrast, patients with lung cancer were least likely to survive, with around only one in 13 patients diagnosed from 2001-5 living five years.

Sarah Cant, head of policy and campaigns at The Prostate Cancer Charity, said it was encouraging survival rates were improving.

“However, they also clearly highlight that there are still regional variations in the survival rates of men with prostate cancer across the country and even across Yorkshire,” she added.

The charity was campaigning to ensure men with the illness got the same care and support wherever they lived.

“We’re calling on the Government to urgently set out the standard of care men with this disease need at every stage of their journey. Men with prostate cancer deserve the best and we want to make sure that’s exactly what they get,” she said.

Nick Ormiston-Smith, of the charity Cancer Research UK, said the figures also highlighted variations in one-year cancer survival rates which indicated how well the disease was being diagnosed and treated promptly.

“Thanks to developments in cancer research we now have better treatments and overall cancer survival is improving,” he said.

“There is still much more to do to ensure that every cancer patient – no matter their age or where they live – has the best possible chance of surviving the disease.

“Spotting potential cancer symptoms early is vital if we are to achieve this.”

Rates of survival vary for a number of different reasons including age, lifestyle and late presentations by patients with the illness but some disparities are likely to be due to variations in treatment.

Cancer survival rates in the UK remain controversial amid criticism they are lower than in Europe and other parts of the world.

The Department of Health last year published figures which pointed to a significant gap in survival despite improvements in treatment in the last decade.

It set out a strategy to improve outcomes, with the aim of saving an additional 5,000 lives every year by 2014-15.